Edly-Allen applauds School Meals Grant awarded to Round Lake High School

SPRINGFIELD - State Senator Mary Edly-Allen commended the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) for awarding Round Lake Community School District 116 funding that allows students to create tasty and healthy recipes for schools across the country via the School Meals Recipe Development Grant.

"This grant is a wonderful opportunity for students to showcase their skills and help improve school lunches," said Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville). "As an educator, I recognize that developing these culinary skills at an early age will provide students with the necessary tools for their future."

ISBE celebrated student chefs during a special taste test event at Joliet Junior College on April 21, 2023. The student chefs hailed from eight districts across the state that received federal Team Nutrition School Meals Recipe Development Grants.

These grants supported students with local cooking competitions, taste testing events, chef demonstrations, and field trips to farms or production facilities of local agricultural products, culminating in the students developing their own tasty and nutritious recipes for school meals.

High school students from each of the eight districts developed and submitted recipes that focus on locally produced vegetables, such as pumpkin, corn, asparagus, butternut squash, and cauliflower.

"This grant provides students a wonderful opportunity to focus on nutrition education and gain culinary experience developing recipes," said State Superintendent of Education Dr. Tony Sanders. "It is so important to understand where our food comes from and how its nutrients fuel us. The recipes these students created celebrate and uplift Illinois' homegrown agricultural bounty and have the potential to reach students in lunchrooms across the country for years to come."

Round Lake Community School District 116 is among the eight schools in Illinois to receive the Team Nutrition School Meals Recipe Development Grant.